


Christmas Is The Time To Fall In Love

by Who_the_hell_is_Tre_Cool



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band), All Time Low (Band)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Party, M/M, Mistletoe, kissing the homies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28263060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Who_the_hell_is_Tre_Cool/pseuds/Who_the_hell_is_Tre_Cool
Summary: Luke looked up at him, genuine tears welling in his eyes. Alex panicked a little bit.“Please don’t cry Luke.”Luke sniffled, burying his face in Alex’s shoulder. Alex spotted Jack out of the corner of his eye, clearly trying to stifle laughter.“I’m just so happy,” Luke mumbled, voice muffled by Alex’s shirt.Alex patted his back awkwardly. “Yeah, yeah. Christmas miracle.”---aka a Hallmark Christmas movie written by someone who's never seen a Hallmark Christmas movie.
Relationships: Jack Barakat/Alex Gaskarth, Luke Hemmings/Ashton Irwin, Michael Clifford/Calum Hood
Comments: 2
Kudos: 22





	Christmas Is The Time To Fall In Love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bellawritess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellawritess/gifts).



> This fic is for [Bella](https://clumsyclifford.tumblr.com//) who sent me [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug6VCkjaF0U/) which i just had to write a fic about.

“Alex mate, I love you, but you can’t spend the whole week moping.” Alex groaned as the covers were tugged back, exposing him to the cold air.

He snuck a quick look from the safety of his pillow, and was met with Luke’s pouty frown, face a picture of worry. Luke had the perfect face for showing off worry. Alex buried his face back in his pillow.

“I can mope as much as I want, thank you very much,” he mumbled, voice muffled by the fabric.

Luke huffed, “But it’s nearly Christmas! You can’t be miserable over Christmas!”

Alex tugged the covers back up and rolled over, facing away from him.

“Watch me.”

He felt the bed shift as Luke sat down beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

“Alex,” his voice was soft, “I know it’s hard. She was an asshole to leave you the way she did. But lying in bed all day and... Stewing isn’t gonna make you feel any better.”

Alex sighed, but unfortunately Luke was right.

Luke continued, “Why don’t you come to work with me today? I won’t make you talk to anyone, and then afterwards we can go and do some shopping or something. I know you haven’t bought your parents anything yet.”

With another sigh, Alex rolled back over, blinking up at Luke blearily.

“Fine.” He eventually gave in. Luke cheered.

Alex wasn’t particularly fond of Christmas, as a general rule. He’d also had the misfortune of meeting Luke in high school and ended up stuck with him. Luke was absolutely lovely most of the time, a ray of sunshine through many a dark day. But he was the human embodiment of Christmas cheer, absolutely obsessed with the holiday. It seemed like fairy lights were constantly reflected in his eyes, shining with childlike wonder.

It had started out as endearing, but eventually it just got annoying.

Luke sprang to his feet and grabbed Alex’s hand, hauling him out of bed.

“Go shower, you stink. I’ll make breakfast.”

“Try not to burn the house down,” Alex grumbled, before retreating to the bathroom to try and make himself feel human again.

❄❄❄

Luke led the way to the coffee shop he worked at, clinging to Alex’s hand. Alex was reluctantly grateful for this grip, as he had forgone gloves thanks to some sense of fully ignoring the holiday. He was an idiot. A stubborn idiot, as Luke had reminded him many times.

The bell above the door chimed when Luke pushed it open, and Alex was greeted with the overpowering smell of cinnamon and peppermint. The interior of the coffee shop was warm and cozy and relaxed, a great contrast to the cold, busy streets outside. The sky was grey and gloomy, a promise of snow looming on the horizon. The coffee shop felt like a different dimension.

Tinsel and wreaths and baubles and lights were strung up everywhere, probably Luke’s doing. Although, the man already behind the counter was wearing a Christmas sweater, so maybe he was to blame. Probably an enabler, at the very least.

“Jack!” Luke called out, and the man behind the counter looked up, grinning. He was attractive, objectively. He had nice brown eyes and a flattering haircut. Unlike Alex, who was still clinging onto his emo bangs.

“Hi Luke. Hi Luke’s cute friend.”

Alex rolled his eyes, ignoring the little kick his heart gave. He’d just been dumped, it was normal to be a little more appreciative of everyone. Or at least, that’s what he told himself.

Something seems to register in Jack’s eyes, and his smile widened, “Ah, so this is the Grinch roommate I’ve heard so much about.”

Alex turned to glare at Luke. “You’ve talked about me?”

“I thought you were his boyfriend at first, from the amount he talks about you,” Jack laughed.

Luke started giggling along as well, and Alex smacked him in the shoulder, scowling.

“You dragged me out here, be nice to me or I’ll go home.”

“Fine,” Luke pouted a little. Jack was still cackling away. “I’ll make you a drink, you can go fester in the corner.”

Alex retreated towards his usual table at the back, ignoring the giggling coming from the other side of the coffee shop. A pair of school girls they were, full of giggles and gossip.

Luke brought him a drink a few minutes later. He knew without looking that it was one of the festive ones. Luke always did that around this time of year, as if the spirit of Christmas could be absorbed into his heart via peppermint hot chocolate. Alex let him think that, and didn’t complain as much as he could’ve. It wasn’t worth the kicked puppy look Luke would get.

After dropping by with his drink and a gingerbread man, Luke started work properly. Alex spent some time trying to write, but he kept getting distracted, fucking around on his phone or watching the way Luke and Jack interacted with each other and with the customers.

It was around three in the afternoon, the sun already hanging low in the sky, when Luke’s demeanour completely changed. Alex suspected the customer who’d just walked in was to blame.

He was tall and muscular, and looked about as interested in the holiday season as Alex was. Jack greeted him with a smile, which he instantly returned, and the pair of them started chatting while Luke stared, pink-cheeked and wide-eyed.

Well that was some information to file away for later.

The boy wrapped up his conversation with Jack, and left with a hot drink clutched in his hands. Jack didn’t seem to have noticed Luke’s reaction to the boy, and instead continued on as normal. Or maybe Luke’s reaction to the boy was normal.

Alex thought that maybe he should start being more involved in Luke’s personal life, instead of spending all his time working or shut up in his room being mopey. If anything, it would give him more things to tease Luke about.

That was always a good motive.

❄❄❄

“Jack’s throwing a Christmas party and I want you to come.”

Alex raised an eyebrow in Luke’s general direction, not looking up from his phone. Bullshit work emails, including one about another Christmas party. Well, he’d rather be drunk around Luke and his friends than be drunk around a bunch of stuffy execs who could get him fired for talking shit.

“Luke man, I love you. But why the fuck would I want to come to a _Christmas_ party.”

Luke grinned deviously. “Because you like parties, you like getting drunk, and it gives you an excuse to get out of your company holiday party, which will definitely be much, much worse.”

Scowling, Alex finally looked up, “Stop reading my fuckin’ emails. And I don’t need an excuse, I can just say no to both parties. Have a quiet night in, me, myself, and a bottle of wine.”

“You’re sad.”

“Thanks Luke, totally needed you to point out how pathetic I am, it’s doing wonders for my self-esteem.”

Luke huffed, “No, I mean literally. I know you’re still torn-up about the breakup. I get it. But you’re forcing yourself to be sad. Come to the party, let yourself be happy for a bit. If it’s really terrible you can go home and I won’t bug you about it again. But I think it’ll be good for you.”

He thought it over for a moment, but Luke’s argument was reasonable. And if it got him to leave him alone then it’d be perfect.

“Fine. I’ll come to the party. But this doesn’t mean I’m gonna start putting up with your shit.”

Luke seemed to ignore the second half of his statement, jumping to his feet with a cheer.

“Thank you Alex! I promise it’ll be great, you’ll have loads of fun. It’ll be just what you need to get you out of your slump. And who knows, maybe Jack as some attractive friends.”

Alex didn’t really care if Jack had attractive friends. He hadn’t stopped thinking about Jack.

“Yeah yeah. Anything to get you to shut up.”

Luke didn’t seem fazed by his comment, clearly able to tell that his annoyance was mostly an act. The problems with living together for three years. Whatever. Alex had a reputation to uphold.

“The party starts at 7pm this Saturday, but I’m gonna go a bit earlier, I’m gonna help decorate.”

“Of course you are,” Alex mumbled, which earned him a cuff round the ear. Okay, he deserved that.

Luke finally sat down, kicking his feet up onto the coffee table, picking up whatever book he’d been reading. Alex went back to his e-mails, ignoring the actual work he was meant to be doing. That was the one thing he liked about Christmas, the fact that his workload slowed down as everyone was getting ready for the break.

Despite his love of the holiday, Luke was usually working over Christmas. Even so, he seemed to love it, spreading his holiday cheer to everyone he came into contact with. Everyone except Alex, it seemed.

Maybe Alex should get him a present, to thank him for putting up with his miserable arse.

❄❄❄

“Scented candles? A bit cliché.”

Alex startled at the voice, turning around to see Jack stood behind him, wry grin on his face. He was wearing another Christmas sweater, different to the one he’d been wearing when they’d first met. Alex wondered idly how many he owned.

“I’m not used to buying big presents,” Alex admitted, turning to place the candles back on the shelf.

Jack nodded, “You trying to buy for Luke?”

Alex winced a little, looking at Jack properly.

“Is it that obvious?”

With a laugh, Jack bumped their shoulders together. “A little. The only time I’ve ever seen someone so frantic is when they’ve forgotten to buy for a partner, or they’re trying to buy an apology.”

Alex scowled. “That’s all well and good, but what do I buy him?”

“Well... Luke like’s cute handcrafted things. He’d probably appreciate the effort of something more personal. Or at least, something less... Manufactured.”

Maybe Jack had a point, but Alex couldn’t help but feel put-out by the fact that Jack knew more about Luke than he did, despite living with him. Jealousy, of sorts.

It was an ugly feeling.

Jack smacked a hand on Alex’s shoulder with more force than Alex was expecting, sending him stumbling a little.

“Come on, there’s a market on, by the high street. You should be able to find something he’ll like.”

And then Alex nearly swallowed his tongue, as Jack grabbed his hand and lead him outside, keeping a hold of his hand as they made their way down the street and across the road.

The market was bustling with people, and Alex kept a tight grip on Jack’s hand as he led him through, seemingly with a destination in mind. Alex just didn’t want to get lost, but it was nice to hold hands with someone other than Luke.

Soon enough, they came to a stop in front of one of the market stalls, displaying wooden sculptures in various sizes, mostly of animals. They were cute. Alex could see why Jack would suggest buying one for Luke.

“I don’t know what your price range is,” Jack said, dropping Alex’s hand in favour of picking up a small elephant to show to Alex, “But these smaller ones are fairly cheap.”

Alex nodded, unable to stop himself from missing the warmth of Jack’s hand.

“I- Yeah, these look good. Thank you.”

“No problem,” Jack bumped their shoulders together, before stepping back to let Alex pick and buy one of the sculptures.

Surprisingly, Jack took his hand again, once he had a paper bag with a small wooden rabbit to take home and hide from Luke. Jack had a small smile on his face, which Alex could already guess was his scheming face.

“Alright, now you owe me one.”

“Owe you? With what, exactly?” Alex rolled his eyes. Jack was still grinning.

“I’m sure Luke told you about my Christmas party, of course he did,” Jack started. “Well, I was thinking maybe you could come to my place and help me bake some stuff for the party.”

Alex frowned slightly, a ‘no’ on the tip of his tongue. But he’d been such a dick to Luke recently, it’d be a great way to make it up to him.

“Okay.”

Jack looked surprised, as if he’d been expecting to have to spend more time convincing him. Normally, that would have been the correct assumption, but for once in his life Alex wanted to do something festive. For Luke’s sake. Or maybe to spend more time with Jack. Whatever.

❄❄❄

“You made the cookies? I don’t believe it!” Luke yelled when he walked into the kitchen to find Alex. The party was in full swing- although it wasn’t quite as wild as Alex was expecting after hearing all of Jack’s stories of his wild college day while they were baking. It was on par with an office party, but less boring.

There wasn’t a full meal laid out, but the table was covered in various sweets and biscuits and party food, many of which Alex had helped make and arrange.

“Yeah,” He responded, wincing a little when Luke tackled him in a hug. “Jack wanted me to help, I thought it’d be fun. You had all the decorating to do, thought it might take some pressure off.”

Luke looked up at him, genuine tears welling in his eyes. Alex panicked a little bit.

“Please don’t cry Luke.”

Luke sniffled, burying his face in Alex’s shoulder. Alex spotted Jack out of the corner of his eye, clearly trying to stifle laughter.

“I’m just so happy,” Luke mumbled, voice muffled by Alex’s shirt.

Alex patted his back awkwardly. “Yeah, yeah. Christmas miracle.”

He was saved from his discomfort by the arrival of some of Luke and Ashton’s mutual friends, Michael and Calum. Michael yelled out a greeting and Luke instantly sprang away, heading to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room.

Michael met him there, before grabbing both his cheeks and pulling him into a loud, obnoxious kiss, before stepping back and pointing upwards.

“Mistletoe,” he said with a grin.

Luke was slightly flushed, but smiling. “I forgot I put that there.”

“Luke, stop kissing my boyfriend!” Calum called from the other room, and Alex laughed as Luke ran off and, from the sounds of it, kissed Calum as well.

Alex was distracted then, by the arrival of his friend Rian, who happened to be dating Jack’s friend Zack. Small world.

“Alex! I got you a present!” Rian greeted, and Alex wandered over to meet him.

Rian held out the shoddily wrapped package, and Alex rolled his eyes. Still, he accepted the gift.

“Open it now. You’re the only one without a Christmas sweater.”

“Oh I wonder what this gift could possibly be,” Alex muttered, before unwrapping it anyway. He was greeted by some charcoal grey wool, and when he held the sweater up he saw it had the words ‘Bah Humbug’ written on it. Okay, he sort of deserved that.

Luke skipped into the room, sharing a quick and giggly kiss with Jack when they passed each other in the doorframe. Mistletoe.

“Put it on!” He cheered. “You match Ashton!”

Eventually, Alex gave in and let Luke wrestle the sweater onto him. It was comfy, he’d give them that.

The party was fun, a few of Jack and Luke’s other friends coming and going throughout the night. Come midnight, it was just Jack, Alex, Luke, Ashton, Calum, and Michael left. At some point, someone set up Mario Kart, a mini tournament breaking out. Alex was sprawled on the couch, watching Calum and Michael fight over the game when he heard a small commotion from the kitchen door. Luke’s damn mistletoe causing problems, he guessed.

And he was right, as he looked up to find Ashton and Luke caught underneath it. Figures that Luke’s plan would backfire like that. Alex had already worked out that Luke had been trying to get him and Jack underneath it. He wasn’t subtle.

Luke was blushing the most he’d ever seen, but he grabbed the front of Ashton’s jumper and pulled him into a kiss, a lot more emotion that the average mistletoe kiss between friends. Interesting.

Ashton and Luke disappeared into the kitchen for a short while, and Alex almost forgot about them, dozing a little with a belly full of sweet and the sounds of Mario Kart in the background, until the pair came back into the room and Michael wolf whistled, startling Alex awake. Jack laughed at him from the other end of the couch.

“Me and Ashton are gonna dip, bye guys,” Luke said, lips slightly redder than before. He was also holding Ashton’s hand. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what had happened, and what was going to happen.

Calum yawned, dropping his controller and stretching his arms, yelping when Michael tickled his sides.

“We’re gonna head off too,” Michael decided, getting to his feet and helping Calum up. “It’s been fun. I’m glad those two finally got their shit together.”

“Me too,” Jack agreed.

❄❄❄

“I’ll help you tidy up,” Alex mumbled, stacking up some plates from the table.

Jack smiled. “You sure? You look dead on your feet.”

“I’m fine.” Alex tried to object, but was cut off by a yawn. Typical. Jack just laughed at him, but it sounded unbearably fond.

Still, Alex helped carry all the dirty plates and leftovers into the kitchen, and helped Jack sort out what was worth putting in the fridge to eat tomorrow and what just needed to be thrown away. They worked together easily with minimal talk. It was nice. Peaceful.

When they headed back towards the living room, Jack caught him by the hip and turned slightly so their bodies were pressed together. Alex couldn’t help but gasp quietly, feeling the air rush out his lungs as Jack’s hand came to cup the side of his face.

Then they were kissing, a soft press of lips that made Alex melt, knee weak. He probably would’ve fallen if it weren’t for Jack’s hands holding him up.

Just as Alex was getting dizzy from the kiss, Jack pulled away, resting their foreheads together.

“Mistletoe,” He murmured, lips quirking with the effort of not grinning cheekily.

Alex just laughed, slightly breathless, and leant up to kiss him again.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments always appreciated <3
> 
> Come find me on tumblr [here!](https://mastasof-ravenkroft.tumblr.com//)


End file.
